Use --permission-mode to Start Claude in a Specific Permission Mode

Instead of toggling permission modes after launch with Shift+Tab, you can start Claude Code in exactly the mode you want from the command line.

claude --permission-mode plan

This launches Claude directly in Plan mode, where it researches and reasons without making changes. Other available modes include default (the normal ask-before-acting mode) and auto (which requires --enable-auto-mode and a Team plan).

This is especially useful when you want to enforce a specific workflow from the start. For example, you might want to always begin a new feature in Plan mode so Claude maps out the approach before touching any files:

# Start a planning session for a new feature
claude --permission-mode plan "Design the authentication flow for our API"

# Or combine with other flags for CI
claude --permission-mode plan --print "Analyse this codebase and suggest improvements"

You can also compose it with --allow-dangerously-skip-permissions for advanced CI setups where you want plan mode as the default but need the option to escalate:

claude --permission-mode plan --allow-dangerously-skip-permissions

Start every session with the right guardrails, not just the ones you remember to toggle.

via Claude Code CLI Reference